Stanley Rodney of Hollister, CA passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on Thursday January 22, 2009. He is survived by his two brothers Ira Rodney of Hollister, CA and Jack Rodney of Centereach, NY; his wife Denese Rodney of Hollister, CA, his two sons Paul Rodney of Albuquerque, NM and Alec Rodney of San Diego, CA. He is also survived by grandchildren Ian, Corinne, and Noah as well as nieces and nephews Nicole, Christopher, Kelly, and Joanne. He was the son of the late Irving and Irene Rodney of Brooklyn, NY.
Stanley was a graduate of City College of New York and an army veteran whose career as an aerospace engineer specializing in explosive systems spanned five decades with projects too numerous to detail. Highlights include development of systems for the Tomahawk cruise missile, solid rocket motor propellants, Delta II expendable launch vehicle, and emergency egress systems for military aircraft. Patents that Stanley was responsible for date back to the 1950s at the Bureau of Standards for work in metallurgy and most recently at Pacific Scientific for mechanisms used in automobile air bag systems. His work with colleagues from NASA dates back to experiments flown on SkyLab to the current New Horizons mission to Pluto. He interfaced with colleagues at the Pentagon throughout his career as well.
Stanley spent his life serving his God, his country, and his family and treasured the many, many friendships throughout his life. He will be sorely missed by his family, his friends, and colleagues throughout the globe.
A celebration of Stanley’s life was held at the First Presbyterian church of Hollister on Tuesday, January 27 at 11:00 A.M. The church is located at 2066 Cienega Road. 831-637-4350. In lieu of flowers please make a donation to the Elks Lodge for the crippled children’s fund.
